See the Flames Begin to Crawl
by Blinx Fireside
Summary: After Jak2. Jak and co meet up with a friend from their past and just when things start to look a little brighter they start spinning out of control. HavenCity is crumbling, and the metalheads have regrouped under a rebelarmy. (ya, i suck at summaries)
1. Chapter 1: Reunite

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Jak and Daxter or any related charaters, I just own the characters that don't belong to Naughty Dog... blah, blah, blah... this is the only disclaimer i'm going 2 write it apllies to the whole story. fun times.

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**Chapter 1: Reunite**  
  
A girl with blonde green hair and purple eyes stared blankly up at the ceiling.... She could remember a time when things where better... When things just felt right... But they didn't feel right any more.. no not any more, it all felt wrong. She used to live in a place called Sandover with her friends... Friends like Jak, Keira, Daxter, and Talon. But the place she was now.. The future... Her home that she had loved so much, where she had gone swimming in the ocean and ran around on the beach with her friends was now called Dead Town... The structures where crumbling and the once sparkling waters where murky and bleak, most of the soft sand had sunk below the water of waste and that which remained above land looked just as foreboding as the water and the falling buildings. And now instead of the happy and friendly people who had once lived there, the place was infested with what few metal heads that could survive there. Discussing creatures really, but the gems in there foreheads... Now those were worth something well at least for those who were brave enough to actually kill one of them to get the gem.  
  
But her friends.... She hadn't seen any of them in over 2 years.... You see what happened was, a few years back Talon disappeared, about a year and a half later, Daxter got turned in to an Ottsel, it was actually quite funny, so him and Jak went all the way to the far north to find a man named Gol to change him back, but as if turned out, Gol was the one trying to kill them and everyone else along with his sister, Maia, with dark eco. Jak was able to defeat Gol and Maia and they ended up dieing in the very dark eco silo they were trying to open to 'reshape the world' the very thing they thought would protect them ended up being their unraveling. After that they found a large warp gate, but when we activated it a swarm of metal heads came through the opening, Jak hit another button that flung us into the warp hole... And well it's getting close to 3 years since we were flung through that hole into the future.... They say the futures all ways brighter, well I haven't seen anything brighter about this future. In fact it looks rather hopeless if you ask me, one of the only save places now is a place called Haven City it's right next to Dead town and is surrounded by large walls and an eco grid, it used to be ruled by a guy call Baron Praxis, but he was killed, so now his daughter Ashlein is in charge and the underground that was all for bringing the Baron down is no more...  
  
I really didn't know all that much about the movement or the Baron for that matter, I just caught bits and pieces of what was going on, but I know that the former 2nd in command of the underground is now the Krimzon Guard captain, and they are starting to rebuild the city. As for my friends though... I still don't know what happened to them, as for Talon, since she wasn't there when we went through the wrap gate I doubt she's even here, she's probably still in the past.. Lucky her.  
  
The girl sighed and got to her feet, and pulled a rifle out of the strap on her back, she had been laying in Samos's old hut in Dead Town, now she was going to have to shot her way back to Haven City, she never used to be like this; before she never would have been able to face metal heads on her own. She admitted she was still a little afraid, but in this place you couldn't be afraid, if you did there was no way you would ever make it off of the ruins.  
  
Looking both ways before she exited the old hut she took the safety off the rifle and began to make a quick decent to the Haven City entrance. She was glade that there was only one metal head that she found on her was down and that it was one of the weaker ones, so she gladly added it's skull gem to the assortment of other things like precursor orbs and 2 power cells in her bags along with a few other skull gems. Once making it safely into the city again, she put her rifle away and started to roam the streets, there was suppose to be a race today, so she decided to head to the track and check it out, for lack of anything better to do.  
  
"Klia." A voice said from behind her as she lend up against the railing at the track people watching waiting for the race to beginning.  
  
"Hum?" She questioned turning around to meet Ashlein, the tough, red haired, new leader of Haven City. She was one of the few friends Klia had made while she had been here, yeah that's right the late Baron's daughter.  
  
"Have you heard anything about this silver eco rumor?"  
  
"Silver eco?!?" Klia questioned a little shocked at the idea, "no I haven't heard anything about it. Why? I mean it's just a rumor... right?"  
  
"I guess... But still it has to make you wonder.."  
  
"Yeah.. I guess." Klia replied resting her chin in the palm of her hand, "Who's racing today?" She asked changing the subject.  
  
"A lot of rookies no one important, except maybe Jak, he's won all the races so far this year." Ashlein replied shifting her weight to the other foot.  
  
Just then the race started, Klia watched the drives race around the track on their zoomers, the fans going wild cheering for their favorite racers, as they came into the final stretch, something caught Klia eye.  
  
"Who built that zoomer?" She asked Ashlein with out ever looking at her.  
  
"A mechanic named Keira," Ashlein replied folding her arms across her chest.  
  
Klia spun around, "Did you just say Keira?" She asked excitement in her eyes.  
  
Ashlein raised an eyebrow, "Yeaaaaah."  
  
"Where is her garage?" Klia prodded more.  
  
"In the 7th garage on the left, top side. Why?" Ashlein asked curious as to why her friend was so excited.  
  
"Ok thanks!" She said taking off with out answering Ashlein's last question.  
  
Ashlein was about to say something else, but decided against it and shook her head, turning back to the race, just in time to see Jak cross the finish line.  
  
Klia walked through the rows of garages until she reached the one she was looking for, the 7th on the left, topside. Entering it, she saw a woman's figure working on an engine that looked like it had over heated one to many times.  
  
"Keira?" She questioned getting closer.  
  
"Hold on a second, I'm almost done here." She replied still deep in her work. After a moment, she put her hands on her hips and smiled with satisfactory, "That should do the trick." She then turned her gaze to the person who had called her name.  
  
"O, my.... Klia?!? It that you? Where have you been?" She asked going over to her old friend.  
  
"Here and there." Klia replied waving her hand in the air.  
  
"It's great to see you! Wait till Jak and Daxter get in here! They'll be glad to see you too!"  
  
Klia smiled, she was so glad to see them, she thought she would never see then ever again. They talked for a while longer about this and that, and what they had been doing the past few years.  
  
Soon the garage opened, and Jak pulled in on his zoomer with an accomplished look on his face, Daxter planted on his shoulder plate.  
  
"Did you see those moves?" Daxter asked looking at himself in their new trophy that Jak set next to all the others, "Jak may have been the one with the handle bars, but do you really think he could have gotten any where with out me telling him what to do?" Daxter continued taking all the credit as usual.  
  
Jak shook his head and rolled his eyes. He was defiantly different, his hair now reached to his shoulders and he had a goatee, he was also more muscled and had a some what darker look in his eyes than the bright eyed boy Klia remembered from Sandover.  
  
"You'll never change will you Dax?" Klia asked smiling.  
  
"Huh?" Daxter said turning around to face the speaker, "Whoa! Klia is that you? How longs it been?" He asked hopping up to a shelf next to her head so that he was eye level with her. "So have you heard about me defeating the metal head leader all by my self?" He asked trying to impress her and flirting all at the same time.  
  
Keira shook her head and looked up towards the ceiling, while Jak folded his arms across his chest and looked as if he was waiting for Daxter to tell Klia his 'heroic' story.  
  
Noticing Jak's gaze, Daxter stopped short before he started telling he's story, "Uhhh, Jak helped too." He said lowly pointing he's thumb towards him.  
  
Klia giggled and shook her head.  
  
"How have you been?" Jak asked turning his attention to her.  
  
This took Klia by surprise and she blinked a few times, she then opened her mouth to question him, but Jak answered before she could ask. "It's along story... Lets just leaving it at that."  
  
"Good, I guess." Klia replied after recovering from shock at the once mute Jak talking.  
  
"So I guess we're the only ones who made it through the gate." Klia said a little disappointed, she missed her family.  
  
Keira nodded, "With all of the metal heads that came through that gate, there was no way any one else would have been able to get through there, besides when we sent them back, the rings broke.. I'm sure that they broke when we went through to." She said referring to the kid they sent back to the past so he could fulfill his destiny.  
  
Klia smiled the same sad smile as the other 3 in the room as they remembered what it was like in the past...


	2. Chapter 2: Caliber

I don't own the song below, it belongs to Kutless they rock my face off and that was what I was listening to when I wrote this and was to lazy to write my own song. Fun stuff.

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**Chapter 2: Caliber**  
  
"Times are changing, rearranging   
All the raging over little things   
Has got me all confused   
And I don't know why   
But it seems I caught the big lie   
And I'm letting go and reaching for truth   
So I can't stop now till I find out what it's all about   
And somehow grab a hold   
So no one can take it away

I'll be holding on   
I see right where I belong   
I know everything that's going on around me

Your frustrations complications   
Time is wasting   
You better figure out whether you're wasting   
Time it all comes down to   
I can't make you feel what I do   
But I can feel for you   
So what do you go to lose

I'm gunna keep on holding on   
While all of this is going on   
I should've seen this all along

But now I see where I went wrong   
That doesn't mean I can't be strong   
So now I've got to carry on   
It's hard to see that I was gone

I'll stay right here   
Where I belong."  
  
A girl with long silver hair that reached almost to her heals tied near her mid-back with a piece of brown leather cord, and with bright teal eyes, strummed and electric guitar and sung those words out loud. She was all alone in a small apartment that she now called home.. At least for the time being. She defiantly had a ruff appearance and any one with half a brain was smart enough not to mess with her. She had a rifle, large heavy ax, and a short sword strapped to her back, a knife strapped on her right leg, and a hand gun on a belt that slanted down her left hip. She also had a dark pair of black sunglasses planted on her nose that her teal eyes peered over, on her forehead where two scars that didn't look more than a year old, and on her back she had black angel wings tattooed from shoulder blade to shoulder blade. But probably the thing that stood out the most about her was the kind of clothing she was wearing. She still wore the open toed cloth type shoes with similar forearm coverings. Everyone thought it was strange. No one had wore clothing like that for decades, it had been study closed toed boots and strong leather gloves (for those who even wore them) for quite some time, so to see some one still wearing these clothes was odd, quite odd indeed. She also wore a pair of white short and a blue and orange spaghetti string tank top that showed her stomach. Her shoes were brown with a piece of white cloth around her feet, and her forearm gloves were the same brown color with pieces of black leather around her wrist and near her elbow to keep them in place, her right leg had white bandages wrapped around it a little past her knee, her left arm was bandaged as well from around her fingers all the way to her shoulder and she also wore 4 silver rings, 2 on each hand.  
  
After she had finished her song, she sighed and laid down the guitar and plopped down on the bed and sighed hanging her head, sadness pouring into her cold and angry eyes.  
  
She looked up as a knock came to her door and a gruff voice came from the other side, "Talon."  
  
"What is it?" She asked regaining her cold edge.  
  
"We need to talk Jak." Torn said as he and Ashlein both entered the garage where the 4 still where.  
  
"About what?"  
  
"There is a large army of rouges who have made a pack with the remaining metal heads. They are planning on attacking various cities, including this one. They plan to take control of as many cities as they can get their grubby hands on, if that happens everyone will be defenseless against them, around sitting ducks for what ever other plans they've cooked up." Torn replied explaining the situation to them all.  
  
"And what do you expect **me** to do about that?" Jak asked raising an eyebrow.  
  
"I want you to accompany me and my men down to the canyon where we're going to ambush them before they can take any more cities, they've already taken Sea Coast, and 3 other cities to the south. The sooner we stop them the better."  
  
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa." Daxter said waving his arms out in front of him, "You want **us**, to go down to some canyon where there is going to be a whole **army** of metal heads and psychos who want to kill us, and take over the city?!? Sorry to break it to ya... BUT THIS ISN'T THE UNDERGROUND ANY MORE!" Daxter yelled.  
  
"If you don't go down and help, it will only be a matter of time before they get here and find you." Ashlein said in a matter of fact tone.  
  
"Ehhhh... Good point." Daxter replied after a brief pause.  
  
"Klia, I want you to go down there with them to, you're a pretty good shot from what I've seen." Ashlein continued, "Here you guys are going to need these." She finished tossing ammo upgrades to Klia and Jak.  
  
"**Me**?!?" Klia asked staring at the ammo upgrade... "You sure that's a good idea?" She asked nervously, she was ok with a few metal heads, but a whole army of them.... She wasn't so sure about this.  
  
"O, and we are also looking to make an alliance with a hunter group who will most likely be in the canyon waiting for the army too." Torn added, "So be careful who you shoot, you wouldn't what to make one of them mad... You'd be dead before you could blink." He finished with a smirk.  
  
"Dead?" Daxter asked gulping.  
  
"We should get going, they'll be showing up soon, and we want to surprise them." Torn said turning around and walking away.  
  
Jak glanced over a Keira, and then followed after Torn, followed closely by Klia. They boarded one of the Krimson Guard zoomers with Torn and took off towards the canyon, once there they landed the zoomers far out of sight and took places high on the canyon walls that looked straight down into the canyon, giving them an advantage over the army that would be passing through below.  
  
"Be prepared for anything." The auburn Krimson Guard captain said walking past them loading his own gun.  
  
Klia closed her eyes and griped her own gun to her chest while leaning against a rock that blocked her from view.  
  
'Why me?!?' She asked herself, 'I can't do this.. Why did I even agree to come?'  
  
"Hey Klia." Jak said noticing that she didn't look quite sure about any of this, "Everything will be fine, you've got nothing to worry about."  
  
"Yeah," Daxter broke in, "I'll protect you." He said cockily flexing his nonexistent muscles.  
  
"Here they come." Ashelin said looking out over the rock as she loaded her gun.  
  
It felt like an earthquake had just hit the canyon, they walls shook and lose rocks tumbled off of the cliffs. Klia griped her gun tighter and gritted her teeth.  
  
"Jak.. Take out their leader." Ashelin said nodding towards a figure below covered in thick armor with silver hair that led the pack of elven people and metal heads.  
  
Jak nodded and took aim over the rock that he sat behind. He looked through the sight until he had a direct shot at the leaders heart. He grinned to himself, "One leader, goin' down." He then pulled the trigger and a large ball of blue and white light shot towards the person below, and hit him just as he looked up to see it coming.  
  
The shot exploded on impact, taking a few others that were near by out as well.  
  
"OPEN FIRE!" Torn said commandingly after the shot hit.  
  
The metal heads howled in rage at the attack and began to climb the canyon walls towards the people of Haven City who had come to stop them before they got any closer to their city, along with their elf counter parts.  
  
"DON'T LET THEM SCALE THE WALLS!" Ashelin yelled as she to took aim shooting the enemies down.  
  
Klia still crouched behind the rock clutching her gun so tightly that her knuckles had turned white, gritting her teeth, and keeping her eyes closed tightly. She listened to the sound of gun shots and people as well as metal heads yelling in pain as they were shot and fell off of the canyon walls back to the pass far below.  
  
"Come on Klia! Where's your head?" Ashelin yelled to her shooting down more metal heads.  
  
'Come on Klia, pull yourself together!' She thought to herself trying to pull herself together.  
  
"THEY'VE SCALED THE WALLS!" Torn yelled to them pointing towards the right were a few very large metal heads had made their way to their level followed by the others who had used them as shields.  
  
"Come on Klia!" Jak said getting to his feet to keep their enemies at bay as long as possible.  
  
Klia still sat there on the ground, she couldn't move, she was afraid. _'This isn't right... None of this should have ever of happened! Why did we have to find that precursor ring!?'  
_  
"Where are the hunters?!?" She heard one of the men ask just before a metal head devoured him.  
  
"They should have been here by now!" Another yelled as he desperately shot at the creatures.  
  
"Klia! Look out!" Ashelin yelled to her.  
  
At this warning, her eyes popped open to see an extremely large metal head towering over her. She screamed and pointed her gun towards it and pulled the trigger letting round after round of bullets shot out of the barrel. After about the 5th round she stopped and look to see the creature push far away from her crumpled on the ground it's contents oozing out of all the shots she had forced into it's body. Klia sighed in relief and looked around her for the first time.  
  
After seeing one of the largest of them shot down, the army began to retreat, running back down the walls and scurrying back through the pass. The Krimson Guard however kept on firing on them until they were dead or had escaped back through the canyon.  
  
"So much for these hunters eh?" Daxter asked holding his hand out in front of him and looking at it as if he had done most of the work by himself. Jak shook his head and suppressed a laugh folding his arms across his chest.  
  
"Watch what you say fuzz ball." A man with chin length brown hair and menacing black eyes said holding a knife to Daxter's neck that was covered in black metal head blood. The man also had a few other various sized knives strapped to him along with a handgun on his right side. He wore black pants tucked into brown and black boots and a deep dark red tunic with the sleeves torn off, he was also well toned and had a tattoo of a sun with 3 swirls inside of it on his left shoulder. "Where's Torn?"  
  
"Over there." Jak said pointing his gun in Torn's direction.  
  
With that the man with drew his knife and walked past the various carnage around them to Torn.  
  
"Sheesh! What's with that guy!" Daxter asked pointing after the man, "Him and Tattoo wonder over there must be related or something. They both have that or so welcoming air around them." Daxter continued sarcastically referring to Torn.  
  
Jak raised an eyebrow and shook his head.  
  
"Jak, Klia! Come over here!" Ashelin yelled to them waving them over to where she, Torn, and the brown haired man from earlier stood.  
  
Klia and Jak looked at each other and then walked over, careful not to step on any corpses.  
  
"These are your **best**?" The man asked raising an eyebrow, "I guess I'll have to take what you give me."  
  
"What do you mean?" Klia asked putting a hand on her hip.  
  
"I need you two to go fins the old eco vents in Dead Town. They say that eco flows in great supply down there. But the vents haven't been used in years.. I don't even know if they really exist, but if they do we'll be able to expand the eco grid and have something to fight the metal head and those fools off with something besides guns."  
  
"The vents exist... But most of them are below the water or covered by rubble." A woman with long silver hair said coming up to them, "And as for you Crim." She said turning her attention towards the man as well as her handgun that produced a silver light and a whir that told them that it was powering up when she cocked it. Positioning the gun right under Crim's chin she continued, "You broke rank, and left 5 men, 2 of which are now dead, and you have the guts to be giving orders to other people not even under your watch." She said walking towards him forcing him to move backwards. "If you EVER break my orders again I'll pop that head of yours right off your shoulders and have it mounted." She finished venomously with drawing her weapon and turning to Torn.  
  
"It's not my fault those rookies couldn't protect themselves." Crim stated in an attempt to defend himself, "If you had just listened to me and left them behind until they were trained right they would still be alive."  
  
The woman narrowed her eyes and brought the gun back up to his neck again as she spun around to face him again, but this time she pressed the barrel against his skin.  
  
Crim wretched in pain, "Ahhrrraaaahhh!" He tried to back away, but the woman kept pursuing him.  
  
"It burns doesn't it?...." She asked coldly, "I can tell you time after time how much pain this thing will inflict, and you may have it ingrained in your brain that it will hurt, but until you actually feel it, you'll have no idea what it really feels like." She then took it off his throat and he dropped down to his knees holding his fresh burn that bleed freely, "The same applies to everything else. Those 'rookies' as you so plainly call them would never be trained properly enough by your so called training exercise, the only way they will ever know what to do it by actually getting out their." She then paused and pressed the gun to the bottom of his chin forcing him to look up at her and making another burn. "Therefore, you were assigned to watch over them an make sure they survived so that they could gain the experience so that they would know what to do. And then you deliberately broke my orders and left them like deer's caught in head lights with an open six." She finished like she was talking to a child. She then jerked the gun up dragging the burn to the end of his chin until it came free, she then put the safety on and sheathed it. "If you ever break my orders again you won't live to do it a 3rd time. Now I believe you have some wounded men to tend to."  
  
Crim glared at her for a moment, but knew better than to press the situation he knew that she really would kill him.. And she would make it painful. He got to him feet still holding his neck where she had burned him and where it was bleeding and went to attend to the injured.  
  
As he left, the woman mumbled something about 'insignificant leeches' and then turned her attention back to the others around her.  
  
"And I thought you had anger issues." Daxter said in a low voice to Jak.  
  
"Who are you?" Ashelin asked looking at the woman.  
  
"Talon." She replied with the same cold edge to her voice but with out any venom to it as it had been when she had confronted Crim.  
  
"Talon?" Torn asked, "**You're** the leader of the hunters?"  
  
"You're a regular captain obvious aren't you tattoo boy." Talon replied flatly.


	3. Chapter 3: Eco Vents

**Chapter 3: Eco Vents**  
  
"Talon?!?" Daxter and Jak said at the same time recognizing the name.  
  
"Whoa! Wait a second here. You wouldn't happen to be the same Talon who 'accidentally' knocked me into that whupbee's nest over on Setiadel Beach!?! **Would you**?" Daxter asked her with the usual overly exaggerated gestures and tone.  
  
Talon looked at him for a moment raising an eyebrow, "I don't know who you are rat boy, but I'm pretty sure I don't know any loud mouthed, orange, ottsels."  
  
"Ouch." Daxter said holding his hands up.  
  
"Would you be willing to come back to the city so we can talk?" Ashelin asked, "We're willing to help patch up your injured if you just hear us out."  
  
"And I suppose you also wanna know about the eco vents." Talon replied putting her hands on her hips.  
  
"You got it." Torn said with smirk.  
  
Talon studied them for a moment and then pulled a walkie-talkie off her belt. "Ketien, round everyone up, if they can't walk get someone able too, to carry them.. We're going to the city." She then replaced the communicator smirking.  
  
"Lets get going then." Torn said as they all headed to zoomers and hellcats.  
  
When they reached the city again and all of the Krimzon Guard's red zoomers and hellcats where put away and parked, zoomers of various different colors with the what looked to be wings painted in black and outline in silver with 7 diamond shapes painted like fire surrounding the wings on each one carrying the hunters.  
  
"Get all of the injured inside and have their wounds tended to." Ashelin told a near by guard who nodded and followed the order he was given.  
  
Now that the wounded where being tended to, Torn, Talon, Jak, Ashelin, Daxter, and Klia all stood around in a meeting room. Talon eyed everyone waiting for the first one to talk, and that person was Torn.  
  
"What do you know about the rebel and metal head movements?"  
  
"Thaaaaat, their rebellious." Talon replied sarcastically as if she was testing her ground with Torn.  
  
"This is serious." Ashelin cut in.  
  
Talon smirked, "Fine, fine. The armies are moving to the east... Or this way, if you will. They are 'collecting' cities that aren't strong enough to with stand their forces, so far they've captured 5. But you really shouldn't worry your pretty little faces about that, with your eco grid and all." She replied saying the last sentence with disgust.  
  
"However," A voice said from behind Talon, "Haven City is of special interest to them." Just then a white snow tiger came into view reaching past Talon's waist on all 4 paws.  
  
"Why is that?" Klia asked.  
  
"The Oracle." Talon replied, "Also because of the ancient Precursor ruins in Dead Town that have sunk beneath the bogs like the eco vents and...." She paused her eyes landing on Jak, "For the tomb of Mar. From what I've heard, the tomb is within the city walls so you don't really have to worry about that much or the Oracle, but if they get a hold of the vents and get them on, you can kiss your butts good bye. As for the ruins there really isn't much we can do about those, except keep the old robot out of their hands and keep them away from the old silos."  
  
"Silos?" Torn asked.  
  
"Yeah. The dark eco silos by a citadel ruin through the old Lava Tube."  
  
"How do you know about that?" Jak asked raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Lets just say I have my ways." She then turned her gaze back to Torn, "Gol and Maia's old citadel still holds a few stores of dark eco that hasn't sunk back into the earth, along with a few things the metal heads will be able to use to get those silos open. The silos are the only way to access the vast stores of dark eco beneath the surface, if they get to them they can destroy and twist everything to their liking, and they will also use the dark eco to fuel their eco shock guns. And let me tell you, when those things are filled with the black stuff it hurts a heck of a lot more than the blue eco. It would most likely kill you." Talon said with a smirk. "But a good way to counter the effects of the dark eco is white eco... But it's even more scarce than active eco vents, so you better hope they don't get a hold of to much of the stuff."  
  
"PAUSE!" Daxter yelled, "How did you know that old citadel belonged to Gol and Maia? And how the crap did you know it was through what they used to call Lava Tube, because I'm sure that it isn't called that any more!"  
  
"What's your name fuzz ball?" Talon asked getting a little ticked off.  
  
"Uh.. He's Daxter.. I'm Jak, and that's Klia." Jak replied before Daxter said anything else to piss Talon off.  
  
Talon's gaze softened for a moment as she looked at them, she then opened her mouth to say something, but at the last moment decided against it. She then turned back to Ashelin and Torn her gaze hardening again, "Get someone to go to Dead Town and find the eco vents and get them running again, you can use that eco to fuel your grid instead of drilling deeper into the earth for that dark crap. Then we'll talk about this alliance."  
  
"We'll do it." Jak said before Torn or Ashelin could reply.  
  
"Whatever, I'll be over in the Slums when you get back. IF you get back." Talon said leaning close to him and then taking her leave followed by the tiger.  
  
"I hope you know what you're doing Jak." Torn said looking at him after Talon left.  
  
"Don't worry, I do." He replied walking out of the meeting room and heading for the palace exit.  
  
"Jak wait!" Klia said running after him. "I.. I wanna help you with the eco vents."  
  
Jak looked at her for a moment and then nodded.  
  
Klia followed the two through the town until they reached the o so familiar entrance to Dead Town where she had been only hours before. The only difference was it had been morning and the sun was shining brightly, now it was nearing dark and the sun barley peaked over the horizon.  
  
"We really aren't going to go out there in the dark... Are we Jak?" Daxter asked from his shoulder.  
  
Jak didn't answer and continued to the door, the 3 paused there and watched the gears slide into place and the door open accompanied by the electronic female voice that said, "Now leaving Haven City."  
  
"If we start at Samos's old hut we should be able to walk right to the green eco harvesters that were on the far side of the beach." Klia said looking around her gun held in both hands ready for any metal heads that took interest in them.  
  
Jak nodded and the pair began to climb, hop, and jump across the old ruins of stone to the only thing that was still the same the Green Sage's hut. From there they made their descent towards what used to be a beach. The people who had lived there had built upon the beach, so even if the place hadn't been destroyed it still wouldn't be the same. Most of the beach had long since sunk into the murky waters colored in brown, there were a few islands that they could jump to and a few of the old wooden bridge platforms that were still able to float on the water. When there weren't any of those, they had to go across the building that stood high out of the water. Their movement was slow and careful, none of them wanted to fall victim to whatever was in the water that had turned it such a color, it looked even more menacing in the fading light.  
  
"Well at least we don't have to worry about Lurker Sharks." Klia said looking down at the water as some of the building they were standing on fell into the water and splashed below.  
  
"You got that right! The only thing that could live in that stuff is metal heads." Daxter said shivering. 


	4. Chapter 4: Opening the Vents

**Chapter 4: Opening the Vents.**  
  
"They should be around here somewhere." Jak said as they looked down into the water from a scaffold that hung on to the near by structure and supported their weight by some miracle of God. Keira had transported a 2 person titian suit to them by using an old transpad that poked it head above the surface of the water.  
  
"Lets get to it then." Daxter said impatiently, "This place give me the **creeps**."  
  
Klia nodded in agreement and hopped off the scaffold to the blue glowing surface below followed by Jak. The scaffold swung and creaked in resistance and Klia half expected it's supports to give away and it to come tumbling down on them, making this place their grave.  
  
"Are you coming?" Jak asked now seated in the titan suit controllers in hand.  
  
"O, Yeah." She said glancing up one more time and then joining Jak and Daxter in the suit.  
  
The thick glass covering came down over their heads and shut tightly around them and the legs contracted into place. Daxter pressed his face against the glass in front of Jak.  
  
"We're uh.. really gunna go in there?" He asked, as Jak pushed the two controller sticks forward sending them down into the water.  
  
When they hit bottom, dirt flew up around them in a large cloud. When it finally settled back down Jak pushed the sticks forward again and the mechanical legs strode them forward slowly.  
  
"Klia, you've got control of the guns." Jak said tilting his head in the direction of various controls next to her, "watch out for metal heads, if they break the suit, we're toast."  
  
"Ri.. Right." She replied taking hold of the controllers and looking around for any signs of life as well as the harvesters.  
  
"Hey, I think I see 'em!" Daxter said excitedly pointing towards a place where a building had collapsed and green light was peeping out through cracks.  
  
"Alright!" Jak said grinning as he let off of the left controller and pushed the right in, causing the suit to turn, he then pushed the left back in and aimed the robot straight for the rubble. "Now all we have to do it knock all this crap out of the way."  
  
Jak then proceeded to depress a trigger on each controller causing the titans arms to come up and repeatedly smash against the old cement. He continued this until all 6 eco harvesters had been uncovers and the green light shot through the brown muck around them to the surface.  
  
"Glad that's over," Daxter said wiping his brow with the back of his hand, "Now let's get out of here!"  
  
Jak smirked and turned them back towards the place that they had come from.  
  
They rode along in silence for along time, until Klia broke it.  
  
"Umm guys! We've got a **problem**!" She said pointing towards a metal head that looked something like a jellyfish.  
  
"MAKE THAT A FEW!" Daxter screamed pointing to two more that emerged from behind more fallen structures.  
  
"Eeeeeck!" Klia squealed pulling the triggers on the guns shooting at one of the large creatures.  
  
"GET THIS THING MOVIN JAK!" Daxter yelled grabbing on to his friends face, "CAN'T WE GO ANY FASTER?!!" he asked panicking more as they got closer, "COME ON! AIM FOR 'EM KLIA!"  
  
"I am! Unless you would like to come over here and try YOUR luck I'd say you'd better shut your mouth!" Klia replied.  
  
Daxter then turned his attention back to Jak, "COME ON! COME ON, COME ON!" He yelled as if trying to encourage the machine to go faster, he then jumped down off of Jak's shoulder to the control panel and lend his full weight against the right control stick as if pushing it harder would make it go faster. Daxter lend harder and harder against the stick walking backwards into it and every other means necessary, until he heard a crack.  
  
"Uh oh." He said his pupils shrinking as the cracking continued until the stick that was supporting him broke. "Oops."  
  
Water then started pouring in through the hole where the controller had been and the titan started to short out.  
  
"Daxter!" Jak said through gritted teeth.  
  
"Uh.. Would you believe it was an accident?" Daxter asked.  
  
"We're going to have to swim for it! This thing's about to blow!" Jak said grabbing the ottsel around the waist and hitting the button that slide the glass back. Jak and Klia swam as hard and as fast as they could to towards the surface. Klia tapped Jak on the shoulder and pointed behind them, the titan suit exploded taking one of the creatures with it, but the other two where getting closer by the second. They could see dry land only a few feet ahead of them, so close they could almost reach out and pull themselves up on it, but one of the metal heads shot out a black liquid at them refusing to let them escape.  
  
Klia closed her eyes and put her hands over them, it burned and her eyes were sheering in pain she tried to swim upward, knowing that the surface was only a few feet out of her grasp, but the liquid seemed to stick to her and drag her down. She struggled against its weight but it all seemed to be in vain. She couldn't see Jak and Daxter any more, and didn't know if they were suffering the same pan as her. It hurt so much, it felt like someone had stuck a million hot needles in her body, she was also running out of air, she could feel everything slipping away as if in a really bad dream and all she wanted to do was wake up and realize that it was all just a dream. All just a bad dream.... 


	5. Chapter 5: A Second Meeting

**Chapter 5: A Second Meeting  
**  
Jak slipped his goggles down over his eyes when the liquid had appeared; he was now searching for Klia. The liquid was only getting thicker and blacker, he needed to find Klia fast, he too was running out of air. He stretched his arm out to the right where Klia should have been and found nothing but more water and the gooey liquid. Finally, almost out of air, Jak swam to the surface and threw Daxter rather roughly on to the dry land and then dove back under, still in search of his other friend. Swimming deeper, he caught a glimpse of something aqua and then something green, _'That has to be her!'_ He thought swimming for the object.  
  
Lucky for him, that was exactly who it was, but what both of them could not see, was that the 2 jellyfish like metal heads had entered the gooey liquid they had shot at their victims and where now closing in for the kill.  
  
Jak grabbed Klia around the waist and began to pull her up, her body felt like dead weight. **'Anything but that...'** Jak thought to himself, **'She can't be dead...'** Breaking the waters surface again, Jak flopped Klia on to the old sand and then pulled himself up as well. Klia stated coughing up water and tried wiping the goo away from her eyes so she could open them, and gasped for air.  
  
"Yeek!" Daxter said in disgust coughing up some of the black liquid, "You could have at least WARNED me before..." He paused a moment and his pupils got really small, he looked like he had just seen a ghost... "Uh.. Jak."  
  
"Yeah?" Jak asked raising an eyebrow.  
  
"I think we should RUN!!!" He screamed pointing behind Jak and scrambling to his feet.  
  
"Whoa!" Jak replied dodging a tentacle.  
  
"Holy!..." Klia scrambled to her feet wiping the last of the goo off of her face and taking off towards the city.  
  
Jak rolled back to his feet and took off after Klia grabbing Daxter on the way and placing him on his shoulder.  
  
"FASTER JAK! I DON'T THINK THEY'RE TO HAPPY TO SEE LIVE GUESTS!!" Said Daxter looking behind them to see the 2 metal head's tentacles piecing through the water. One of them had pulled its self halfway up out of the water and on to the land and had its mouth located on the underside of its body opened revealing large rows of sharp teeth and was slinking its arms towards them so it could have a midnight snack.  
  
The 3 ran hard jumping over holes in structures that were soon demolished after they had left them due to the angry metal heads, and over marshes and missing bridge pieces. They soon passed Samos's old hut and skidded around a few corners.  
  
"THERE'S THE DOOR!" Daxter yelled watching the monsters behind him, as if Jak and Klia hadn't seen it.  
  
The gears started sliding into place on the door and the same computerized voice greeted them, "Glade to see you back alive."  
  
"WE WON'T BE ALIVE LONG IF YOU DON'T GET THIS DANG DOOR OPEN!" Daxter yelled at the voice.  
  
When the doors had opened all the way, Jak and Klia quickly entered them and turned around to see the monsters tentacles only a few feet away. Klia gasped and pressed herself against the other door to the city, Jak following her lead and getting as far away from the door to the outside as possible, the metal heads tentacles almost reached them. They stretched out a bit farther and then... The door slammed shut on their appendages dislocating them from their body and the door they were leaning against open causing them to fall back on the hard ground. They both could hear the metal heads howling in pain outside the wall and could see their left behind body parts twitching in the room.  
  
Klia gasped more sitting up clenching her hand to her chest where her heart was. "Holy... Cheese." She said through gasps of air.  
  
Jak smirked getting back to his feet and looking at his friend, "Lets go."  
  
Klia nodded still in shock and slowly got to her feet and followed after the young heir of Mar. They walked along silently into the slums, Jak looking side to side from time to time looking for Talon.  
  
"This Talon chick told us to meet her in the slums. So where the heck is she?" Daxter asked back to his old self.  
  
"Not bad." Talon's voice came from beside them.  
  
The trio turned to their right to see the silver haired woman leaning up against the entrance to the old underground in the dead end alley way.  
  
"Tell Torn we'll talk," she said walking past them, "He knows where to find me." She then stopped short, "O... And Jak watch out for the council... The city is in a power struggle, the people want answers.... The council needs someone to blame other than themselves..." She stopped smirking, "Lets just say that even Ashelin can't protect you any more."  
  
"What are you...." Jak started to question, but she was already gone, "Where did she go?"  
  
"Talk about eerie." Daxter said pointing his thumb where Talon had been. 


	6. Chapter 6: The Grand Council

**Chapter 6: The Grand Council  
**  
"What are we going to do about this?" A rather plump middle-aged man asked looking at the rest of the council. "The people what answers.... And this 'Jak' person, who supposedly saved us was associated with both Kor whom was the metal head leader, and Krew who was going to help blow the city to pieces as well as working some rather shading dealings around the city in his time."  
  
"They also say he turns into a horrible monster when he is angered." A man broke in who looked more like a walking stick.  
  
"Gentlemen... I think I know what to do about our currant situation." A balding man said turning from the window to face his fellow councilmen. At this all of them perked up, there was a way out of this mess, and it didn't involve them being blamed.  
  
**The next morning  
**  
"She said that?" Torn asked raising an eyebrow after Jak and Klia had related to him what Talon had told them in the alleyway.  
  
"Yeah. And let me tell ya, it was creeeepY!" Daxter said butting in, "Right after she told us all this crap, the girl disappeared into thin air." He finished fluttering his hands out in front of him dramatically.  
  
Torn looked both ways and then looked back at Klia and Jak, "I'd be careful then. Talon and the hunters are the elite guard to Spartus. It's a pretty rough place, most of the time they want absolutely nothing to do with Haven City **especially** if it means helping us out, to many of them were kicked out of here by the Baron. But the one thing that you can count on, is all of their information in 100% accurate, if they don't know for sure then they won't even bother telling you. And even then you're lucky they tell you." He paused a second and looked down at the bar in front of them his arms resting on it crossed in front of him. "And hearing it from Talon should be considered an honor, she doesn't trust outsiders."  
  
"And how do you know so much about her?" Daxter asked crossing his arms and tapping his foot on the counter.  
  
"I ran into her a few years ago out in the wastelands before I quit the guard. She helped me out. I gained enough of her trust in that time to where she'll let me know in advance if something** big** is going to happen. Her own comrades are lucky if she tells them. But one thing's for sure, she's wired into the system by someone. I've been trying to figure out who it is for years and I still don't know."  
  
"If it's so hard to gain this Talon's trust then why did she warn me." Jak asked.  
  
"Probably payment for getting those harvesters opened. She doesn't like to be in anyone's debt." Torn replied looking up.  
  
"Or maybe..." Klia started thinking for a moment pacing a few feet past Torn in the bar and then turning back to face them, "It was the Talon we knew from Sandover!"  
  
"What!?" Daxter asked raising an eyebrow, "You heard the woman! She's never seen us before!"  
  
"Besides," Jak cut in a little angry, "The Talon I knew would **never **put people on missions like, she would do it herself before she ever let anyone else."  
  
"Yeah!" Daxter agreed, "She wouldn't even let me go in after that ring I dropped in the cove."  
  
Klia rolled her eyes and smacked Daxter upside the head. "That's because you where sea sick and would have drown, retard!"  
  
Torn smirked as Daxter rubbed the back of his head, "But still, she wouldn't have let me even if I wasn't sea sick." He mumbled.  
  
"I still think it's her." Klia said crossing her arms and tapping her foot annoyed.  
  
"If that's Talon Farside then Haven City will crown me king tomorrow." Jak said not in the best of moods any more.  
  
"Well then hello your majesty." Klia said with a sarcastic bow, "You just don't want to except the fact that this place has change her..." She paused a moment, "Just like it's changed you."  
  
After that last comment, Jak was off his bar stool and right in Klia's face. "If you'd been through **half **of what I have you'd be the same way." He retorted angrily, "I'm out of here."  
  
Torn raised an eyebrow looking at the two.  
  
"Fine you do that!" Klia replied stomping her foot and turning away from him.  
  
"Uhhhhhh." Daxter said looking at Klia for a moment and then to Jak, "Hey Jak wait for me!." He said scampering after him and hopping on his shoulder just before he left the 'The Naughty Ottsel'.  
  
"That's one guy, I defiantly wouldn't want to piss off." Torn said pointing after Jak.  
  
"Torn, we've got a problem." Ashelin said coming in the door.  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"Where's Jak?" She asked looking around.  
  
"You just missed him. Why?"  
  
Ashelin looked down and lend against the bar.  
  
"What's wrong?" Torn prodded farther.  
  
"I tried to stop them, but they over ruled me. We don't have a choice."  
  
Torn furrowed his brows in thought, and then looked up his eyes wide, "You mean they're..."  
  
"Exactly." Ashelin replied before he could finish the question.


	7. Chapter 7: Banishment

**Chapter 7: Banishment  
**  
Jak stormed through the streets of Haven City, what gave Klia the right to say that that person could be one of his best friends. There was no way.... No possible way.  
  
The static crinkled on the radio as one of the Krimzon Guards depressed the talk button, "Target in sight."  
  
Jak paid no attention to this; after the Baron was gone and Torn had taken over the guard he no longer had to worry about being hunter down by them or being shot at or shocked.  
  
"Freeze!" One of them commanded getting right in front of the duo and pointing his shock gun at them.  
  
Jak raised an eyebrow and finally took notice of his surroundings; him and Daxter were completely surrounded by the men in bulky red armor each of them simultaneously clicking their shock guns on.  
  
"You don't want to mess with me today." Jak replied.  
  
"We don't want to harm you." One of the guards said, "You are to come down to the palace by order of the Goveneress Ashelin and the Grand Council."  
  
"Well you could have just said that in the first place instead of pointing all your fancy little guns at us like we're fugitives." Daxter said pointing at their guns emanating the blue shocks. "Let's go Jak."  
  
Jak looked at the little orange ottsel sitting on his shoulder for a moment and then nodded, "We know where the palace is... We don't need your help to get there." He said roughly pushing through them.  
  
The guards didn't even bother to follow him after that, they had heard the stories just like everyone else about him being a monster, so they radioed for a zoomer to follow him from a far distance to make sure he actually went to the palace.  
  
"Why would Ashelin send the guard to find us?" Jak asked Daxter as they neared the palace, "And what's this about the 'Royal Council'?"  
  
"Uhhhh.. Maybe it has somethin' to do with what Talon told ya." Daxter suggested.  
  
When they reached the palace they walked down the long hallway towards the throne room when they pushed the doors open, they were meet by 2 Krimzon guards who pointed their guns straight at Jak's head and another who slapped a rectangular cuff around both of Jak's hands.  
  
"Whoa!!" Daxter screamed and ran off, before the guards could do any thing to him.  
  
"Get moving." One of the guards said jabbing Jak in the back with his gun. Jak stumbled forward and shot a glare back that the man.  
  
After following the front guard they arrived at a large carrier bus and boarded, inside was Ashelin who didn't look to happy, and the balding mid-aged Grand councilman. The carrier took off and headed out of the city.  
  
Jak looked back and forth between the two guards, then at the older man, and then his eyes finally landed on Ashelin. "What the heck is going on?"  
  
Ashelin avoided his gaze and said nothing, finally the carrier landed on the ground and the back port opened creating a ramp to the ground that they had used to board earlier that morning.  
  
The guards stood up pulling Jak up with them, followed by Ashelin and the man. The man open a large blue book and they began to walk out of the carrier, the guards not missing their chance to shove him along the way.  
  
"By order of the Grand Council of Haven city," Be began, "For unspeakable acts and crimes against the people of you are here by banished to the wastelands. For life." He finished in his arrogant voice. Ashelin then undid the cuff and they boarded the carrier again. "May the Precursors have mercy on you." The man said as the door closed and the ship took off for the city again.  
  
Jak watched after the carrier in disbelief.. He was all alone in the middle of a dessert that stretched on for miles, and Ashelin had just left him there and said nothing to him, she didn't even offer him any help.  
  
"Hey Jak! How do you get yourself into these messes? Sheesh, I'd hate to be you." Daxter said scampering up his shoulder.  
  
"Indeed you do have a knack for trouble." The parrot with a Spanish ascent said landing gracefully on his other shoulder.  
  
Jak raised an eyebrow and looked at the two of them, "Dax? Pecker?"  
  
"What you didn't think I was gunna leave ya?" Daxter asked cockily.  
  
"There is a city to the north," Pecker said pointing his feathered arm behind them, "It is were everyone who has been thrown into the wastelands or who has been unlucky enough to find themselves there lives."  
  
"Let's get going then." Jak said heading in that direction, he was seriously pissed off now.  
  
**2 hours later  
**  
"Man it is seriously hot out here!" Pecker said wiping sweat off of his forehead.  
  
"At least... Now we know why they call it... The wastelands.... Because you'll most likely die.... Before you get any where..." Daxter said panting.  
  
Jak wasn't looking to good either, the hot sun was barring down on his back and he had been walking north for 2 hours with out any water or shade. After taking a few more forced steps, Jak collapsed, Daxter and Pecker falling off of his shoulders into the hot sand.  
  
Jak looked up into the sky and laid there he couldn't move any more, he was to tired and dehydrated, the same went for his friends. Jak tried to keep his eyes open for as long as he could, that way he knew he was still alive... But his eyes slowly closed as all control of his body slipped away from him. 


	8. Chapter 8: Ketein Tigereye

Big thankies to Dark Eco Freak for commenting 

* * *

**Chapter 8: Ketein Tiger-eye**

"We found 3 bodies out to the south to day." A boy who looked about 15, with messy brown hair that feel to his shoulder and over his face the only thing keeping it out of his kind blue eyes was a black band around his forehead, reported to his commanding officer.

"If they are still alive make sure that they get plenty of water and rest.. Keep them cool... If they're dead then get their corpses out of the city... We don't want to attract any metal heads with rotting flesh." Talon said looking out at the night sky at the stars.

The boy nodded and turned to leave.

"Oh.. And Ketein...."

"Yes?" He asked turning around.

"Report to Damus for me... And make sure that no one bothers me for the rest of the night."

Ketein nodded and left.

Talon sighed and rubbed her head closing her eyes. "Why me?" She asked no one in particular.

The boy strode down the hallway towards where he and his men had laid the 3 they had found. Yes that's right, his men. Ketein was second in command under Talon by her appointing. He wore very little armor, in fact the only pieces he wore was the thin piece of metal from his headband to the end of his nose and a piece around his waist, you know kind of like what the Roman Soldiers used to wear during Caesar's time, but not exactly. Other than that, he wore a dark blue robe that reached to about mid-calf and was lined at the bottom with armor, he had a blue green wrap around his waist with a matching loin that flowed down the middle of the front and back of his robes, gray boots with dark gray bands, a matching longed sleeved shirt that turned to black around his torso and went all the way up to his chin, dark gray glove type things that went in between his index and middle finger, and his left ear was pierced near the end with a silver loop. But there was also something else about him that gave him a less friendly appearance... Instead of regular fingernails like everyone else, he had sharp talons that protruded from his fingertips.

Ketein turned from the previous hall down a short one and to an elevator. Taking the elevator down he came to another hallway and then entered a room on the right.

Inside the room on the bed laid a man with long green blonde hair and a goatee, an orange rat, and a red bird.

"Are they still alive?' He asked the guard on duty.

"They're vital signs are weak, but for the time being they still live." He replied.

"Good, make sure they are kept alive, when they awake come and get me." And with that the boy turned and left the room.

He walked quietly down the hall his hands folded behind his back looking out the large windows he passed out at the dessert. The dessert sky was beautiful it sparkled like a rare diamond with stars and was a deep and dark blue like the depth of the ocean.

Talon had told him stories of what the world used to be like... How the ocean waters had been so crystal clear and so deep that you would never be able to find the bottom, also how vegetation flourished every where you went and the sand along the shores was so soft it felt like you where walking in the clouds. He always loved to hear her talk about these things, which was on the rare occasion. But the thing that fascinated him the most was open and plentiful vents the flowed pure eco; and not the dark eco that was now found so often from people drilling into the earths crust, but yellow, blue, red and green eco. It amazed him.

He finally came to another elevator and took it back up, this time he came to a rather large room where a man with white hair and wearing a lot of different kinds of armor holding a staff like object turned to meet him.

"What do you have for me today Ketein?" He asked.

"The metal head and rouge armies are regrouping, after our last ambush along with the Krimzon Guard of Haven City they are pretty shook up. The old 'Green Eco Harvesters' in Haven Cities 'Dead Town' have been found and reopened by the Commander's order." The boy pause a moment, "I saw the green glow they emitted.. It was amazing, to see green eco in such quantities."

"Really?" The man asked interested.

"Yes, Damus. I've never seen anything like."

"Hummm.... As far as I know eco hasn't flowed freely from the ground like that in ages, unless you would like to count the dark eco." Damus replied stroking his chin in thought. "Anything else?"

"Yes, we found 3 out to the south today, they are barley alive, but they should live..." Ketein paused again and waited for Damus' reply.

"3?" He asked... "Notify me when they awaken."

"Of course." Ketein replied with a smile and a nod.

"And one more thing Ketein."

"Yes?" He questioned.

"Why did Talon not report this to me herself tonight?"

"She has requested to be alone for the remainder of the night." Ketein paused frowning, "Something seems to be bothering her."

"I wouldn't worry about it kid. Talon can handle whatever it is herself. You should probably get over there now, and make sure that no one bothers her though."

Ketein nodded still frowning and took his leave.

Walking back into the elevator and riding it down and the walking down the long hallway once more and then up another elevator around the corner and down the hallway towards Talon's room. There was a short indented hall that went to her home and Ketein positioned himself in front of it so no one could pass with out his knowing.

He folded his hands behind his back again and looked out a large bay window across the way thinking his eyes growing sad.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't little old Ketein." Crim said coming up to him and ruffling his hair. "What does the 'commander' having you doing this late at night? It's it past your bed time?"

Ketein came out of his thought, "Watch what you say, you walking piece of metal head crap."

"What did you call me?" Crim asked grabbing him by the collar of his robes and lifting him off of the ground.

"You heard me..." Ketein replied calmly, "And that will get you 3 weeks of guard duty out on the south grid. If you're lucky there won't be to many metal head attacks, but I doubt that." Ketein then twisted his wrist forcing him to let go of him and landed back on the ground gracefully.

Crim gritted his teeth and clutched his wrist in pain, "Listen you little snot-nosed brat.-"

Ketein cut him off, "You don't listen to well do you solider? Leave now before you get a few more weeks of grid duty. And keep that mouth of yours shut."

Crim gritted his teeth more and clenched his fists, "I wish to speak with Commander Talon." He said holding back his rage and trying to be polite enough to where he would get any more grid duty.

"The Commander has requested to be left alone. She won't see you tonight."

"Fine." Crim said roughly turning on his heel and walking back down the hallway still clenching his fists.

Ketein shook his head, _'Some people...' _He thought.


	9. Chapter 9: On Your Own

**Chapter 9: On Your Own**

**2 weeks later Afternoon**

Jak moaned and clutched his head sitting up. He found himself in a 4-poster bed with a thick red blanket over him and crisp white sheets underneath that matched the pillow his head had been resting on. The room its self was a tanish cream color and had a window on the far side looking out into the city below. After noticing all this, Jak noticed that Daxter and Pecker where laying on the other half of the bed still asleep, there was also a girl with brown hair that dropped to her shoulder in the front and the gradually climbed to the nape of her neck in the back. She had dazzling green eyes and wore reddish orange metal head armor along with pieces of torn and wore brown cloth.

She smiled at him, "Glade to see you awake."

"Where... Where am I?" Jak asked still holding his head and pushing the cover off of him; he soon realized it was very cold in the room.

"The Wastelands." She replied, "Ketein should be in here soon."

Jak gave her a questioning look as the door opened and the girl stood up to meet the brown haired boy Ketein.

Ketein whispered something to the girl and she nodded and left. He then turned to Jak. "I see you and your friends are awake."

"Huh?" Jak asked looking beside him to see Daxter and Pecker sitting up as well looking dazed.

"So we made it to the city, eh?" Pecker asked being the first to regain his full senses back.

"The city?" Daxter asked looking around blankly, "Are you sure we aren't dead?"

"Of course rat boy." Pecker replied crossing his arms.

"You are Pecker... Onion's interpreter, correct?" Ketein asked eyeing the bird.

"The one and only. And my friends here are Jak and Daxter." He replied pointing to the two.

"And who are you?" Jak asked letting go of his head and shaking it.

"I am Ketein. An you are in Spartus." He said tossing a few items to Jak. "You will be aloud to stay and live here... But other than that you are on your own. If you want to make a name for yourself though..." He continued pausing. "There is a tournament being held in a few days, for those who feel the need to amuse themselves in such away. If you win you will have gained much respect from the people here. Pecker can tell you more about it, I'm sure." He then turned the doorknob, "Good luck," and was gone.

Jak stared at the door a moment more and then looked at the items that the boy had thrown to him. There was a brown leather canteen, a few clothes, an ammo upgrade, and a box of yellow ammo.

"Sheesh, what's with all the gun parts?" Daxter asked looking at the items, "Is this place really THAT dangerous?"

"From what I've heard..... Arrrrrrrrk! Yes." Pecker replied.

"Great. We finally get the Krimzon Guard off our back and don't have to worry about being shot at every where we go, and now we get thrown into a place where if you aren't good enough they'll kill you." Jak said shaking his head, how **did **he get himself into these messes? He flopped back down on the bed pulling the cover back over him and closed his eyes.

After a few minutes Jak sighed deeply and sat up again and slid out of the bed. He pulled on his boots that had been placed by the door and exited the room, Daxter hopping to his shoulder and Pecker soaring after them.

Ketein clicked his radio on walking down the hall towards Talon's home. "Damus."

There was a pause followed by a lot of static and a few gunshots.

"What is it?" His gruff voice came over the speaker.

"They are awake." Ketein replied depressing the button again to talk and then letting go of it waiting for a reply.

"Good. We'll see how they fair."

Ketein then replaced the radio and turned towards Talon's apartment and was about to knock of the door but paused. He could here he gently strumming her guitar and singing softly, she had a lovely voice, it was enchanting.

"The pain is almost to much

Yet I find that only I am to blame

Stretching for the light

But all ways falling short

Could it but just enough?"

After listening to that short bit, Ketein knocked and the strumming immediately stopped and Talon opened the door with the usual cold look in her eyes like she had never sung those words.


	10. Chapter 10: Undercover?

_Hola!! It's been years since I updated this (or so it seems) sorry to those of you who have been reading this. ::ducks from books and a few sharp objects thrown at her head.:: eh he anywho, I'll try to update more frequently, I've just been swamped with HW recently. Peace!_**

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**Chapter 10: Undercover?**

**Back in Haven City**

"Dang it!" Klia said slamming her fist down on the bar.

Ashelin, Tess, and Keira jumped back a little she had broke her silence that had preceded since Ashelin had told them that Jak had been banished 2 weeks ago, during that time she had only spoken to when spoken to.

"Why did we have to find that cursed ring!?!"

"Calm down Klia." Samos said calmly.

"Clam down? Calm down!" Klia yelled angrily at him, "How can I calm down when I know that if we had never found that ring we would never be here! Jak would have never been changed the way he has! He, he wouldn't have been banished to a vast wasteland where he's probably already dead! And the last thing I ever said to him wouldn't have been, 'You just don't want to admit that you're wrong!'" Tears were now streaming down her cheeks. "And we would know where Talon is! We would still be with our families! This isn't were we belong!"

"Not so." Samos said in the same calm and understanding tone, "If we had never found that ring, you would never have known Jak, Keira, or I."

"What do you mean?" Tess asked.

"I mean," Samos continued, "This is our time. Jak was hidden in the past so that he would gain the skills needed to face the metal head leader and save our race. He is the one and only heir of Mar. I went back with him to watch over him. Therefore if that ring had never been found Gol and Maia would have opened the silos back in time, and all would be lost in the first place."

"Heir of Mar?" Klia asked through her tears, "But how?"

"Jak is the heir of Mar?" Ashelin asked, "He was that kid?"

"Yes. It would appear that the 'Grand Council' has banned the rightful King to their city." Samos replied almost laughing.

"That still doesn't make up for the fact of what I said to him, or that he is probably dead." Klia replied sobbing.

"Don't worry about Jak, I'm sure he's fine." Samos said reassuringly.

"Yeah," Keira said trying to cheer Klia up as well as herself, "Jak's gotten out of a lot of tough spots I'm sure he's fine!.... He's got to be."

"That's not good enough." Klia said getting to her feet, "I'm going to go find him."

"Whoa. Hold on a second Chilly Pepper." Sig said putting a hand in front of her. "The Wastelands are a dangerous place, there's miles of nothingness. You can't just run out there by yourself and expect to find what it is you're looking for." He paused a moment and then stood up as well cocking his peacemaker and smiled at Klia, "Which is why I'm going with you."

Klia smiled up at him and hugged him , "Thanks Sig."

Sig then turned his attention to Keira, "What about you Cherry? We could use someone who knows their mechanics out there, you never know how long transport will last."

"Lets get going!" Keira replied hopping off of her stool.

"You three can't be serious." Ashelin said shaking her head. "If you're caught by the patrols you could be banished too."

"It's not that hard to get around them and out of the city." Klia replied placing a hand on her hip with a tone that told everyone that she had done this several times before.

"I'm not talking about the city patrols, I'm talking about the Wasteland patrols. Ever since we've caught wind of the rebel armies there have been double pounder patrols around the city, it's also to make sure that the ones who have been banished don't try to come back and kill who ever got them thrown out." She told them walking past them and then turning back to them placing her hands on her hips.

Keira folded her arms across her chest and shifted her weight from one leg to another. "So what you're saying is it wouldn't be a problem if we had clearance!" She said snapping her fingers.

"Or you could just take the transport that's heading out tomorrow." Torn said from the doorway. "The 'Council' has decided to send a shipment of green eco to Spartus to bribe them for information. There is a guard team of 6 going with it. There is also a special shipment of eco ore that might need some special protection, and we could use a mechanic on the way. I'll be leading it personally so you shouldn't run into to much trouble, that is if you 3 are up to it."

"We'll do it." Klia said determinedly.

"Good. Meet me over at the Fortress at 7. Here's a pass card." Torn said tossing each of them a deep red pass that said Krimzon Guard in the black Precursor lettering. "Those passes will get you in any area in Haven City, including out of it."

All 3 of them nodded examining the passes.

**The next morning 7 o'clock**

Klia slid her pass through the slot by the Krimzon Guard's Fortress door and watched it slid open. Her, Keira, and Sig entered the door and walked door a small hallway looking around.

"Follow me." Torn said coming out of an adjacent hallway in front of them.

Klia looked back at Kiera and Sig who shrugged, and they followed him in silence.

They soon entered into a room that was filled with Krimzon Guard armor and weapons. There was also a man in there who didn't look to be much older than 21with wavy silver hair streaked in brown, amber eyes, and covered in plenty of tattoos.

"This is Hooru, he's our weapons specialist, he also does all of the tattoos." Torn said gesturing towards the ones on his face. "All the Krimzon Guard have them, they are identifying marks."

Hooru smiled at them and waved.

Klia looked at Torn raising an eyebrow and shifting her weight from one leg to another.

Hooru then scribbled down something on a pad of paper and handed it to Torn.

Torn read it and then looked up at them, "He says he's been working on an eco bullet prototype. He's been hoping someone would try them out."

Hooru nodded and smiled pointing to a black case in the corner.

"Here's the barrel upgrade for it." Torn finished tossing it to Klia, who grinned.

Keira raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth to ask a question, but Torn answered before she could get the question out.

"He's a mute." Torn said.

The boy smiled at them one last time, and then turned back to his work.

"Oh...." Keira said softly looking down.

"We need to get the Eco loaded and then we can head out." Torn said heading for the door.


	11. Chapter 11: Hot Coals part 1

This place looks familar... Hummmm... Where am I again? I haven't updated in years I'll try to update more I promise! (hopefully) lol

Blinx

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**Chapter 11: Hot Coals (Part 1)**

Jak looked around at the wasteland city taking in every detail he could. It amazed him, the place was completely covered in desert sand, yet it was right next to the ocean, and off in the distance he could see a forest.

He soon found himself walking up a metal platform and under an overhang carved out of stone.

"Well, if it isn't the newbies." A heavyset man said coming into view in front of them.

"Are you talking to me?" Jak asked gruffly.

"YEAH!" Daxter pitched in, "You talking to…..! Him?" he finished pointing a thumb towards Jak.

The man chuckled, "Around here everyone pulls their own weight. And it's time you boys started to do so."

By now Jak had started to walk away.

"Besides, if you do a good job you might find yourself with a few new gun upgrades."

"I'm listening." Jak said turning back to the man and folding his arms across his chest.

"I thought so…" He said chuckling, "You see that jungle out there? There are some old Precursor ruins in the heart of that place, the Commander is out there now and could use some assistance moving an old artifact. That is if you boys are up for it."

Jak grinned, "You bet."

The man chuckled again "There's a Land Rover over there you can use." He said gesturing to his left towards a large 4-wheeled vehicle. "Good luck… You're going to need it"

Jak then proceeded to jump into the vehicle and drive off leaving a cloud of dust in his wake.

**Later**

"There's no way we'll be able to get through there in this thing." Jak declared aloud eyeing the thick greenery that covered their entrance to the forest.

"Isn't that convenient?" Daxter replied sarcastically heaving a sigh.

Jak smirked and began to work his way into the forest.

"So… Ah… How are we supposta find the "Commander" in this "Vegetarians Paradise"?"

"I guess we can just follow the metal heads." Jak said stopping his eye wide looking at the mass carnage of slaughtered metal heads that seemed to form a path.

"The what?" Daxter asked peering over Jak's shoulder "Ewwwwwwwww… Metal head guts… Bleh. Remind me not to get on her bad side." He finished referring to Talon.

"Let's just hope she did this and not something else." Jak replied as he began to follow the black-blood stained path.

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That was a really short chapter... lol. 


	12. Chapter 12: Getting There

I know I haven't updated in a while (a really long while) but I'm not all to busy now and I figured I better at least try and finish this thing out cause if I don't it'll bug the crap out of me... It's good to be on the internet again.. :sigh:

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**Chapter 12: Getting there**

Keira took a deep breath and seated herself next to Klia and Sig on the transport, she glanced up at the 3 other guards sitting across from them and then looked back down at the ground clasping her hands together.

Two of the guards started up their own conversation, talking about things that had happened to them will on duty and so forth and so on. Keira, Sig, and Klia whispered quietly between themselves every once in a while. The third guard who sat in the corner near the exit however, remained silent with his arms folded across his chest.

Keira shifted uneasily, although she couldn't see his eyes, she could fell his gaze on her and it gave her the creeps. Finally she couldn't take it any more and looked his directly in the eyes. "What is your problem?" She asked annoyed.

The guard didn't answer her, but she could continue to feel his gaze. "Hellllo?" She said angrily waving her hand in front of her face. "are you going to answer me?"

The man still refused to answer her, "Fine then." Keira said folding her arms across her chest.

While fuming, she saw the man chuckling out of the corner of her eye, but stopped herself from saying anything else, she figured she was already causing enough of a scene.

"Hey." Torn said after about another 30 minutes as he turned around to tap on the glass sheeting that separated the cockpit for the back, "We're here."

The transport the proceeded to land on the sandy surface and the occupants exited and where met by Damus.

"What's this?" he asked as soon as they had exited the transport, "Last I recalled Haven City wanted nothing to do with those in the Wastelands."

"The Grand Council has felt it necessary to send a gift of green eco and eco ore…" Torn started but was cut off.

"In return for information I'm sure."

"Yes." Torn replied.

"Haven Cities fate is no longer of any concern to any of us here. Out here everything is either useful or dead weight, and we don't have time to have pity on those who can not survive." Damus replied turning his back to them and proceeding to walk off.

"Wait!" Klia yelled after him followed by Keira.

"Do you know where Jak is?" Keira asked.

"The newcomer?" Damus questioned, "Proving himself. You are welcome to stay and wait until he returns…" He paused a moment, "If he returns."

"Wh-what is that supposta mean!" Klia and Keira both asked at the same time, but Damus ignored them and continued to walk away.

"Here." Torn said tossing a communicator to Keira, "Radio in when you're ready to come back, we've got to get this back to the city before the council throws a fit."

"Ok." She replied softly as the others began to reboard the transport and take off.

"Don't worry chilly pepper," Sig said patting her on the back, "he'll be fine."

"I hope so." Keira replied.


End file.
